Why Cannabis Companies Must Understand Their Target Audience for Marketing

You can do everything “right” in cannabis marketing but if you’re not targeting the right audience, your efforts will go unnoticed.

What do all of the best cannabis marketers have in common? They know who the heck they’re marketing to and they stick to it. 

It’s a good time to figure this out if you haven’t already. With the coronavirus affecting the cannabis market in many ways, companies need to step up their game and figure out who their audience is. 

Target audience matters in cannabis marketing 

Do you know who you are trying to target when you write a promotional tweet or Instagram post?

If your brand is primarily selling to active people in their mid-twenties, it makes sense to tailor your posts to that audience. Why? Because in building your content around a target audience, you can cultivate a brand that is the perfect fit for their lifestyle. Why would they choose another company if yours already understands their needs and values?

Let’s say your product is a full-spectrum CBD oil. This can be used for so many purposes. So, narrow down who it is you want to target the most and tailor your posts to their interests. 



Your target audience should inform ALL of your marketing efforts.  What problems do they have and how can you solve them? Let them know.  This should make figuring out what to post much easier as you can look to your audience and think about their wants and needs.

What if I want to attract all kinds of customers?

If you are starting a cannabis brand, it’s important to have a target audience. Your product should exist to take care of a problem for consumers and in creating this product, you should know who those people are. 

Of course, there may be more than one demographic using your products. Find a delicate balance in your blogs and social content that switches between target audiences without too much a drastic difference. 

Here is an example of how you can reach more than one audience: catering to active young adults and aging seniors. Your product can be tailored to either audience and you can demonstrate how it may benefit both. Instagram posts, blogs, and all content can switch between the two while maintaining an overall message of wellness (or whatever it is your product is doing). 

Here is a bad example of reaching more than one audience: catering to aging seniors and young recreational stoners. There is not much overlap in the goals of these two demographics and older generations still may be battling a stigma with cannabis use. Switching between posts about empowering people with achy joints and muscles and posts about taking fat dabs will only cause both audiences to lose interest. 

Now, dispensaries know that their customers come from all walks of life. It’s crucial to recognize this in your marketing efforts. 

Dispensaries have so much information at their disposal to create an endless supply of marketing content. Talk to your customers, see why they use your products, and then take that information to make useful guides or posts highlighting why people like certain products in your dispensary. 

Cater to all lifestyles. Have some posts reflect those that just like to get high, because you know that’s a large part of a dispensary’s customer base. But shoppers of all ages focused on wellness or relief also make up a big part of a dispensary’s customer base. So keep your content varied and pay attention to what your customers are shopping for. 



Be consistent with your postings and pay attention to insights as well. If 85% of your Instagram audience is made up of young adults, you can focus your marketing efforts on Instagram towards these people. That doesn’t mean you shouldn’t include occasional nods to other uses. You can also make your blogs on your website more targeted to other demographics that may be more likely to read an informative piece elsewhere.

Final considerations for audience and weed marketing 

Cannabis marketing is largely about catering to the right audience and doing so in a meaningful way. Show potential customers why certain products may be useful and how others are finding success. Of course, never make medical claims. There is an art to describing how and why products may help with certain conditions without making medical claims. 

In a highly competitive market, knowing your audience means standing out. It means building a brand around a target consumer and solving that consumer’s problems while consistently providing them with meaningful information. 

Once you understand who your audience is, you can start to understand how your audience works. You’ll know which posts do well, which posts provide value, and what kind of content your audience will be looking for in the future. Paying attention to this information can greatly improve your marketing efforts. 

Don’t know where to start? Can’t come up with topics to keep your audience engaged? Have ideas but can’t turn them into well-written pieces? Don’t fret.



Hire a freelance cannabis writer (like me!) and they can take care of it for you. Whether you’re looking for a Seattle freelance cannabis writer for local business help or you are located far away, I can help you with all of your written cannabis content needs.